I walked into my local National bookstore today with the sole intent of purchasing a Vietnamese phrasebook for our upcoming Hanoi trip and to stop by Fortune’s bakery to see if they had any pan de regla. Unfortunately for me this National bookstore had every phrasebook you could ask for including Greek and Hindi, but nothing whatsoever to represent our neighboring southeast asian country. Also quite unfortunately, the digital revolution coupled with a rising cost of living and competition from upmarket bookstores has made sure that almost every National bookstore is perpetually on sale. Sales being the bane of my existence, I cast a wary eye on the stack of books that beckoned to me with stickers marking them at 50% off or more.

I gave in.

30 minutes later, after having hemmed and hawed and called my girlfriend for support NOT to buy the books (which is completely useless since if it were up to her she’d spend all her money on books she’d never have enough time to read) I am at home with a stack of 4 books (fever pitch and a long way down by nick hornby, Imperial Earth by Arthur C. Clarke, and The Universe in a Single Atom by the Dalai Lama) on my desk and one piece of ensaymadang monggo because apparently Fortune Bakery doesn’t sell anything as tawdry as pan de regla. I look at the stack of books with a mix of pride and regret since while I’m proud that I bought 4 books for 1000 pesos that at full price would have cost 3600++ pesos I’m also burdened with the possibility that I may have bought more books than I will ever have enough time to read.

I’m selling all most of my toys. I’m sad to see them go, but I don’t have space to keep them anymore. Check them out here if you’re interested, or if you know someone who is. Or if you know someone who deals in toys who might want to buy them wholesale. Don’t know about the prices yet but we can talk about that if you’re really interested in something.